Ecological Relationships
This is the type of relationship where both organisms benefit.
What is mutualism?
This term refers to the variety of life in an ecosystem.
What is biodiversity?
This process allows plants to take in carbon dioxide and make food.
What is photosynthesis?
This occurs when natural environments are destroyed for human use.
What is habitat destruction?
This relationship involves one organism benefiting while the other is unaffected.
What is commensalism?
This species has a disproportionately large effect on its ecosystem relative to other organisms. (If this organism dies out, the ecosystem is greatly affected)
What is a keystone species?
This process releases carbon dioxide when organisms break down food.
What is cellular respiration?
This is the introduction of harmful substances into the environment.
What is pollution?
This interaction helps regulate population sizes by one organism feeding on another.
What is predation?
This type of succession begins on bare rock with no soil.
What is primary succession?
This process converts nitrogen gas into a usable form for plants.
What is nitrogen fixation?
This human activity removes trees and reduces species diversity.
What is deforestation?
This occurs when two species fight over the same limited resource.
What is competition?
This type of species causes harm when introduced to a new ecosystem.
What is an invasive species?
This process transfers carbon from living organisms to long-term storage when organic matter is buried and transformed under heat and pressure over millions of years.
What is fossilization?
This long-term change in Earth’s temperature affects ecosystems worldwide.
What is climate change?
This interaction involves one organism altering the behavior, physiology, or structure of its host over time to maximize its own reproductive success, often without immediately killing the host.
What is Parasitism?
These events, like hurricanes or wildfires, can both damage and improve ecosystems over time.
What are natural disasters?
This process mediated microorganisms converts ammonium into nitrites and then nitrates under aerobic conditions, playing a critical role in soil fertility.
What is Nitrification?
These are actions humans can take, such as conservation or reducing pollution, to protect biodiversity.
What are sustainable practices?